Closure



A. A. HORTON Aug. 28, v1928.

CLOSURE Filed Oct. 1926 gnumllol flLENjJfOKT'ON.

Patented Aug. 28, 1928.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ALLEN A. HORTON, OF PLYMOUTH, MICHIGAN, ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS, TO THEEATON AXLE 6: SPRING COMPANY, OF CLEVELAND, OHIO, A CORPORATION OF OHIO.

, CLOSURE.

Application filed October 6, 1926. Serial No. 139,896.

This invention relates to improvements in closures of the type provided with opposed locking fingers for co-operation with the opposed cam portions of the device to be closed. The object of the present invention is the provision of an improved closure of the character described which comprises separated inner and outer walls each of one piece ofnietal and effectively associated together so as to prevent movement therebetween, with a looking member having its body portion arranged between said we Further objects of the invention are in part obvious and in part will appear more in de- 1 tail hereinafter.

In the drawings, Fig. 1 is a vertical sectional view of my improved closure applied to a tubular filler member; Fig. 2 is a bottom' plan View of the closure; Fig. 3 is a vertical sectional view thereof, taken on the line 3-3,

Fig. 2; Fig. 4 is a plan view of the tubular member of Fig. 1; and Fig. 5 is a vertical sectional view of said tubularmember, taken on the line 55, Fig. 4. v

The closure illustrated in the drawings includes an outer wall and an inner wall, separated to provide an air chamber 1 therebetween. Said outer wall includes a top portion 2 provided'with a centrally disposed, circular dome 3 and 2. depending, marginal skirt portion 4 provided with longitudinal corrugations, said top and skirt portions preferably being of integral form, as shown.

The inner wall includes a centrally disposed cup-shaped portion having a cylindrical body 5 and a circular bottom 6 ;.a horizontal annular flange portion 7 extending outwardly from the upper end of the body 5 and engaging the top portion 2 of the outer wall surrounding the central dome thereof; and an annular flange or skirt portion 8 depending from the outer edge of said horizontal flange portion 7 and longitudinally corrugated to correspond to the corrugated skirt portion 4 of the outer wall. The inner depending flange portion 8 is of such size in cross dimension as to snugly or closel engage the outer skirt portion 4 and is o substantially the same length or depth as said outer skirt portion, as clearly indicated in the drawings.

Preferably, and as shown, the three portions of the inner wall, to-wit, the cup-shaped portion, the'horizontal flange portion and the depending flange portion, are'all of integral dome 3 of the outer wall. and is vented to the inside of the device to be closed through two opposed openings 13 in the cup-shaped portion of the inner wall. Said openings 13 are at substantially the junction of the cylindrical body 5 and the circular bottom 6 of said cup-shaped portion and are adapted to have extended therethrough the spring end portions 15 of a locking member 16 arranged Within said cup-shaped portion. Said locking member comprises a strip of spring metal and has its middle portion riveted or otherwise suitably seeured, as at 17, to substantially the'eenter of the bottom 6 of the cupshaped portion. The ends of said locking member project outwardly beyond the cylindrical body 5 of said cup-shaped portion and are adapted to yieldingly engage the opposed cam portions of the device to be closed, as will later appear.

In the presentembodiment of the invention, the device to be closed is an'automobile fuel tank 20 having the cam portions for cooperation with the spring fingers 15 of the closure carried by an upwardly extending filler neck. Said neck includes a cylindrical body portion 21 which may be an integral part of the tank 20 or separate therefrom and provided with a base flange 22 for attachment thereto around the edge of the opening 23 in said tank. At its upper end, said body portion 21 is provided with an inwardly extend ing, substantially horizontal flange 24 terminating in a depending flange 25. At two diametrically opposite points, portions of flanges 24 and 25 are cut away so as to provide two passageways 26, through which the locking ngers 15 of the closure are ada ted to be passed, as will later appear. T e cutting away of said flanges provides two depending flanges 25 of substantially semi-circular form, and the bottom edges of these flanges are inclined to provide cam portions 27 with which the locking'fingers of the closure are adapted to co-operate in eflfecting detachable locking connection of the closure with the neck portion 21 of the tank. At the rear ends of the cam portions 27 are provided recessed dwell portions 28, in which the locking fingers of the closure are adapted to engage when the closure is in fully seated position on the neck portion. Just beyond said dwell portions, the depending flanges are provided with depending lugs or projections 29 which provide stops for the locking fingers of the closure when said fingers are travelling up the cam portions 27.

The closure is applied to the neck portion 20 21 in the usual manner of bayonet joint connections, the locking spring fingers 15 of the closure being passed down through the passageways 26 of said neck portion. The closure is then turned in a clockwise direction, which causes the locking fingers thereof to ride up-the cam portions 27 with yielding effeet, the rotary movement of the closure being continued until said fingers strike the stop portions 29 which denotes full seating position of the closure. To remove the closure, it is only necessary to turn it in the reverse direction, whereupon the spring fingers thereof will leave the dwell portions 28 and ride down the cam portions. The closure can then be removed from the neck portion, the locking fingers of theclosure being passed through the passageways 26, as before.

Preferably, the closure is provided with a yielding gasket 32 which is adapted to lie between the horizontal flange 24 of the neck portion and the top portion 2 of the closure outer wall when the closure is applied to the neck portion. It is of substantially the,

same width as the annular chamber formed by the depending flange portion 8 and the cup-shaped portion 5, 6 of the inner wall, and is maintained within said chamber, even when the closure is removed from the neck portion 21, by the projecting outer ends of the spring fingers 15.

WVhen the closure is applied to the neck portion 21 of the tank, as indicated in Fig. 1, the spring fingers 15 of the closure are near the bottom of the openings 13 in the cup-shaped portion of the inner wall, so that said openings are effectively baflied against the normal escape therethrough of the liquid fuel in the tank 20.

What I claim is:

A closure for devices having opposed cam portions, comprising a one piece outer wall and a one piece inner wall, said inner wall including a depending cup-shaped portion, an outwardly extending annular portion at the top thereof, and a depending cylindrical axially corrugated skirt portion at the outer edge of said annular portion, said outer wall including a central portion and a depending cylindrical axially corrugated skirt portion at the outer edge thereof, said central portion of the outer wall overlying the cupshaped and annular portions of the inner wall and contacting with the latter portion, whereby an air chamber is provided between the cup-shaped portion of the inner wall and the central portion of the outer Wall, said central portion being provided with an aperture venting said chamber to the atmosphere, the skirt portions of the inner and outer walls being arranged in interlocking relation with the lower end of the skirt portion of the outer wall bent inwardly beneath the skirt portion of the inner wall so as to firmly maintain the two walls in assembled relation, the interlocking corrugations of the skirt portions of the two walls preventing relative rotary movement thereof, the cup-shaped portion of the inner wall being provided in its side with two opposed openings which vent the air chamber to the inside of the device to be closed when the closure is applied to said device, and an elongated inherently resilient locking member arranged in said air chamher, said locking member intermediate its ends being secured to the bottom part of the cup-shaped portion of the inner wall and havingits two end portions projecting outwardly thro gh the opposed openings of said cup-shape portion, whereby said projecting end portions of the locking member are free for engagement with the cam portions of the device to be closed when the closure is applied thereto.

In testimony whereof I hereby alfix my signature.

' ALLEN A. HORTON. 

